High Altitude Marketeering

Is the outdoor industry ready for online-only workbooks? They’re cheaper than printed workbooks. That’s good. Reps and buyers won’t like it. That’s bad. So far, it’s a tie. Here’s the tie-breaker. Never mind your worries about luddite dealers with no high-speed internet in their stores, at Outdoor Retailer, the premier industry trade show, you can barely send an email, let alone load pagefulls of products. Read the rest of this entry »

During political campaigns, media handicappers talk about “positive” and “negative” opinion numbers. Successful candidates need the right mix of both. High positives and high negatives indicate great name recognition—voters know who you are, they’re just very divided in their opinion of you, often an indication that a candidate will do well with a core constituency but poorly with moderate voters.

Brands are subject to the same opinion polarization and big brands are often the most polarizing of all. So how do you deal with the negatives if you’re a Walmart or a Starbucks looking to appeal to the big fat middle? Starbucks is about to try an innovative approach: wearing a disguise. Read the rest of this entry »